Poll: Boulder not the most religious town

Rev. Mark Twietmeyer, left, of Trinity Lutheran Church, and Rev. Martin Lettow of Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church both from Boulder, wait for the right moment before beginning Easter service at their annual Easter Sunrise Service at the Boulder Reservoir. Boulder takes a close second in the running for the least religious city in the United States, according to a new Gallup poll.

Cliff Grassmick/The Daily Camera

Rev. Mark Twietmeyer, left, of Trinity Lutheran Church, and Rev. Martin Lettow of Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church both from Boulder, wait for the right moment before beginning Easter service at their annual Easter Sunrise Service at the Boulder Reservoir. Boulder takes a close second in the running for the least religious city in the United States, according to a new Gallup poll.

BOULDER – Boulder ranks near the bottom of cities where people say they’re very religious, according to a nationwide Gallup poll.

The Gallup Organization’s phone poll of 240,000 people in 189 U.S. metro regions taken last year shows Boulder is statistically tied with Burlington, Vt., at the bottom of the poll.

The Denver Post Sunday reported that in both those cities, 17 percent classified themselves as “very religious.”

The Provo-Orem, Utah, area ranked the highest with 77 percent.

According to the poll, 40 percent of Americans surveyed rate themselves as “very religious,” while in Colorado the statewide average is 34 percent.